


Startup My Heart

by smallorbits



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Age Swap, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, CEO Kim Jongin | Kai, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-20
Updated: 2018-08-20
Packaged: 2019-06-30 04:31:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15744357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smallorbits/pseuds/smallorbits
Summary: Business entrepreneur Kim Jongin decides to invest in a social media app designed by IT tech student Chanyeol.





	Startup My Heart

**Author's Note:**

> written for the chankai fest! based on the prompt by oksooweetie!

Jongin’s life could be considered a Cinderella story. He was a fairly normal student, striding along with middling grades and no particular aim until a long lost uncle swept into his life like a hurricane in Jongin’s final year of university and for some strange reason, appointed him as the heir to his company.

It wasn’t a large company then, just a small startup team of eight working on a restaurant booking website and app, and there wasn’t much to inherit per se, but his uncle, Joon, was adamant about teaching Jongin the ropes.

“I’ve decided that I want to retire by 45,” said Joon, who disappeared to the States 15 years ago and lost practically all contact with his remaining relatives until he appeared again as a moderately successful CEO looking for a heir. “And here you are, the son of my dear sister!”

Joon was a great mentor and an even cooler uncle, insisting that Jongin address him by his name, the mere thought of it horrifying Jongin completely. It had taken almost six months before Jongin could erase the years of hierarchy training drilled into him and taken to calling Joon by name.

Within five years, What’s For Dinner grew from a small homegrown company to one of the top restaurant booking services in Seoul and Jongin went from lost fresh graduate to the darling of the start up scene. 

 

 

Joon fully passed the reins of the company to Jongin two years ago, but every day Jongin still has a bad case of imposter syndrome. The company is great, ranking among the top most downloaded apps in the food category. His employees roll in at 10am dressed in jeans and tees, but productivity is sky high and he’s never had a problem with employee retention.

He worked himself to the bone building up the company, and yet sometimes it just doesn’t seem to be enough.

Baekhyun, his Head of Marketing and Branding, slams the laptop closed before Jongin can scroll to the end of the comments page. Jongin has barely finished reading the comment about freeloaders and rich kids. “Stop looking at dumb comments from netizens who don’t know what they’re talking about.” 

Jongin pushes the laptop away and drops his head to the table, glumly pouting up at Baekhyun. “But what if they’re right?” His voice is bordering on a whine, but he has long dropped trying to act professional around Baekhyun, his most trusted right hand man in the company. It didn’t take long for Baekhyun to worm his way into Jongin’s life as a true friend anyway.

“What you have is an image problem,” Baekhyun says decisively. He leans over the table and rests his elbows on the table, cupping Jongin’s face in his hands. “No one knows how much hard work you have invested in this company, and you being so adorable when you’re sad makes it even harder for anyone to take you seriously.”

“Make people love me,” Jongin mumbles, choosing to ignore Baekhyun’s comment of him being cute. He lets Baekhyun play with his cheeks, squeezing them until he can barely feel them anymore.

“ _I_ love you,” Baekhyun says, leaning closer and puckering up his lips.

It’s just what Jongin needs to start laughing, his moment of self pity forgotten as he dodges Baekhyun’s stubborn lips. “Stop!”

They tussle like kids for just a bit longer before Baekhyun gives up and ruffles Jongin’s hair instead, making Jongin protest about looking messy for his four o’clock meeting. 

Baekhyun beams at him and Jongin finds himself smiling back, shoulders relaxing. “Don’t worry, buddy. I’ll make the world see how great our Jonginnie is.”

 

 

Jongin isn’t too good at the PR side of things, but that’s why Baekhyun is here.

Jongin inherited Baekhyun from his uncle when Baekhyun was only a marketing executive, but even then Baekhyun had shown promise.

He trusts Baekhyun’s judgement completely, and that’s how Jongin finds himself fidgeting in a cafe on a Tuesday afternoon, waiting to meet the man who will hopefully change Jongin’s image.

The idea sounded good on paper, mentoring a young professional in their personal and career development. Empowering youth, knowledge sharing, demonstrating that Jongin is committed to building up the tech scene - Baekhyun explained it all to Jongin and they both agreed that it would help position Jongin as an industry thought leader instead of a freeloader who rode on his uncle’s coat tails. 

The chosen mentee would receive a business grant or even an investment if the idea proved successful enough, so there’s a possibility for this to turn into a business opportunity.

There were a lot of proposals, some of them futuristic and useful like the one that wanted to build an augmented reality parking spot locator, and some silly like the application that contained a database of public toilets.

In the end, one proposal in particular caught Jongin’s attention and when he sheepishly showed it to Baekhyun, Baekhyun had rolled his eyes.

“Typical. Tinder for dogs, Jongin? Really?”

“It’s not a dating app,” Jongin protests and holds the iPad closer to Baekhyun, scrolling to the second page of the well-made proposal. The app developer, one Park Chanyeol from Seoul, explained the concept clearly with cute graphics and a video of the app’s easy-to-navigate interface. “It’s an app that helps dog lovers make friends and meet more dogs. It has a social cause element to it too, you see, linking pets in shelters to the right owner.”

Baekhyun takes the proposal over and flips through it rapidly. When he finds what he’s looking for, he breaks out into a smug smile and cocks his head at Jongin. “He’s cute.”

Park Chanyeol _is_ cute, in that hapless, college student kind of way. The photo he attached with his application shows him grinning widely, too long bangs falling into his eyes. His ears stick out and make his soft, youthful face look even younger.

But that is entirely beside the point, and Jongin tells Baekhyun so, stressing that he chose this proposal for its clear enthusiasm and well thought out concept. “It’s practically ready to launch, and you know there’ll be a lot of media attention on this.” 

“Sure, sure,” Baekhyun says indulgently, but he sets aside the proposal and in the end, Jongin has an appointment with Park Chanyeol.

 

 

Now that Jongin is actually minutes away from meeting his new mentee though, Jongin has half a mind to abandon ship. He’s stirred his drink so many times that the ice has melted, and the sprig of mint swims sadly in the over diluted mixture.

Jongin sees Chanyeol’s hair before he sees the rest of him, but it’s hard to miss the fiery red mess of curls bouncing outside the window. Even from far away, Chanyeol is visibly short of breath, running his hand through his hair and hiking up the backpack slung over his shoulder.

Chanyeol’s eyes widen as he pushes the door and he half bounces his way over to where Jongin is seated, apologies already streaming from his lips.

Chanyeol has on a sweater over a long sleeved collared shirt and he looks like he’s drowning in fabric, sleeves falling over his hands and hair in his eyes. He looks younger than the twenty three stated on his profile, but maybe it’s just his oversized clothes.

From the way he fiddles with his collar, Jongin has suspicions that this is Chanyeol’s idea of dressing up. Jongin suddenly feels the need to unbutton the top button on his own shirt, acutely aware of how overdressed he is in a casual cafe.

“I’m sorry, sir, for being late,” Chanyeol booms, exclamation marks audible in his every sentence. He seems to be the kind of guy who announces his presence and Jongin finds himself warming up to him.

Jongin grimaces and waves a dismissive hand. “Please don’t call me that. I don’t think we’re that far apart in age.” He discretely wipes his hand on his jeans before holding it out, which Chanyeol grabs eagerly. His grip is firm and Jongin notices how his own hand disappears into Chanyeol’s. It makes him both feel self-conscious about having small hands and yet note with slight interest how large Chanyeol’s hands are. “Chanyeol, is it? Call me Jongin.”

“Yes, Chanyeol!” Chanyeol grins and oh God, Jongin is way in over his head. “Thanks for choosing me.”

“Thank you for choosing me too,” Jongin returns. He slides a menu across the table for Chanyeol, finding anything just to keep his hands busy.

Chanyeol has no interest in ordering anytime soon, though. His eyes light up and he leans forward, enough to make Jongin want to inch away. “You’re _the_ Kim Jongin, man! I loved reading about how What’s For Dinner was set up.” His smile turns shy, and Chanyeol finally takes the menu and hides his face behind it as he says, in a quieter voice, “Plus, most eligible bachelor in the tech scene.”

Yeah, Jongin could strangle Baekhyun for that.

“It was a joke interview,” Jongin mumbles, stirring his drink again. Jongin has never met someone so forward as Chanyeol before and he feels infinitely out of his element. “I didn’t know that was the angle.”

“But everyone agreed, so that’s what matters. What’s not to like about you? Smart, handsome. Nice, I hope.” The shyness has been dropped now that Chanyeol has picked up on how flustered Jongin is and he takes on a teasing tone.

Chanyeol doesn’t even need an app to make friends or pick up people. Jongin feels like the roles are reversed now, and Chanyeol is the one with the upper hand.

Luckily, relief comes in the form of the waitress coming by to take Chanyeol’s order. Chanyeol is just as charming with her, asking for her recommendations with a genuine interest, and she walks away with a giggle and a shy scrunch of her nose. Jongin really doesn’t blame her. 

In a desperate attempt to get the ball back into his court, Jongin changes the subject. “So, tell me about yourself.”

“Oh!” Chanyeol launches into this long but funny spiel about his back story, from how he started out studying architecture but fell in love with a coding elective that he took. 

It takes about ten minutes into a story involving libraries and a food fight before Chanyeol remembers what he’s here for and backtracks quickly, taking out his phone to show the app in action. “Sorry,” Chanyeol says sheepishly, scrolling through the app to show Jongin the interface. “I tend to ramble when I’m nervous.”

“No, I enjoyed it,” Jongin says and is surprised to find he actually did. Chanyeol fills up the silences with enough words that Jongin doesn’t need to worry about awkward conversation.

“You’ll see profiles of dogs in a 5-mile radius around you and if you see a pup you like, just press the pawprint here and you’ll Imprint on them.” Chanyeol explains, walking Jongin through the fairly simple functions. “But that’s really the secondary function of the app. My main goal is this tab here where we have profiles of the dogs and cats found in the nearest shelter so you can hopefully give one a forever home, or book a slot as a volunteer to walk them.”

“I know some people aren’t that quick to warm up to others, so the app offers conversation suggestions, some obvious ones like the background of your pet or silly topics like your dream burger,” Chanyeol continues. “So like, my roommate- his name is Sehun, he thinks it’s a dumb idea even though he’s one of those people that could use topic starters to keep a conversation. It’s not a groundbreaking idea and to be honest, I was really surprised when I got the email back saying I was chosen, I guess I just need to convince you and shit.” 

As soon as Chanyeol realises what he said, he slaps his hands over his mouth and bites in a gasp. It reminds Jongin so much of those puppy in trouble memes Jongdae likes to send him, and he instantly understands why Chanyeol chose to develop a dog friendship app of all things.

Jongin fights back a laugh and leans back in his seat. “I’m not good at this socialization thing either, so conversation starters sounds amazing. You’ve already sold me halfway.”

Chanyeol nods eagerly and exits the app, pulling up his photo gallery and rapidly swiping through photos. Jongin catches sight of a lot of close up selfies, a few shots of Chanyeol and his friends, and- is that a topless photo of Chanyeol? 

“First of all, this is my baby, Toben.” He proudly shows Jongin the photo of a black ball of fur, its innocent eyes looking straight at the camera.

Jongin hums in approval. “A poodle. I have three poodles myself.”

“Three?” Chanyeol’s entire body jerks in his excitement, making Jongin sit back in surprise. “I would imprint on you so fast.”

“Toben is pretty cute. I’d imprint on you too.” Jongin wrinkles his nose. “Maybe change the term for it when you actually launch the app.”

“If you don’t mind, you can install the beta version on your phone and we can test it out. There’s an inbuilt chat function which works like any other chatting service, so you can run through all the functions offered and tell me which one works and which is dumb. Also, all the buttons are pawprints, because it’s cute.”

“I mean, it’s nothing like anything you’re used to and I’m a complete amateur,” Chanyeol says, suddenly shy. “I’m not good at the whole organisational thing. But I’m ready to learn

“I really like your enthusiasm and it’s obvious you put a lot of effort into this,” Jongin says encouragingly. “In fact, it looks ready to launch and I’m happy to test it out with you to work out any other kinks it may have.”

Chanyeol’s responding smile is so blinding, Jongin doesn’t think they’ll have a problem getting along.

 

 

Baekhyun is waiting at Jongin’s desk the next morning, a feat since Baekhyun usually isn’t even seen in the office until sometime past noon. Something about not being a morning person, but Jongin has always let it slide because more often than not, Baekhyun is the last person to leave.

This morning though, Jongin isn’t exactly pleased to see Baekhyun spinning around in his leather chair.

“How was Mr. Park?” Baekhyun sounds mild and professional, like he’s genuinely interested in how the meeting went. “Was he friendly?”

Jongin knows better and chooses his words carefully. “Yeah, I think he’ll be great to mentor. Seemed really eager about it and he has good ideas.”

“Was he cute?”

“No,” Jongin says, a little too fast to sound nonchalant. “I didn’t particularly notice because we talked about _business_.”

That’s all Baekhyun needs to hear. “Great, when’s your second date?”

Jongin doesn’t tell Baekhyun that he’s meeting Chanyeol for dinner tomorrow night, just out of spite.

 

 

Despite Jongin’s nerves, dinner goes surprisingly well.

Chanyeol chooses a fusion Italian place in the back streets of Gangnam that’s up-and-coming among the trendy young people of Seoul, but not so fancy that they feel out of place. Figures that Chanyeol would know the hippest spots around Seoul too. 

“I reserved our spot on your app,” he tells Jongin cheekily.

This time, they talk about Jongin’s day-to-day responsibilities, the projects he’s working on and how he started out over a meal of pasta and wine.

Jongin tells Chanyeol the short version of how he came to take over his uncle’s company, and he expects Chanyeol to ask the same questions everyone does when they find out about his background, with a hint of contempt and jealousy, but instead Chanyeol pouts.

“That must have really sucked.”

Caught off guard, Jongin stops twirling his fettuccine and asks, “Sorry?”

“No, I mean, it’s pretty cool how you inherited this super cool company, but it wasn’t your choice, y'know?” Chanyeol seems to remember the purpose of the dinner only too late and quickly backtracks. “Not that having my own company isn’t my dream. It is, completely. I’m really thankful to be chosen for the mentorship program and the business grant, if you’d give it to me, will really support my dreams.”

“I get what you mean,” Jongin says quietly. “I didn’t choose this, but I’m glad I did.”

“I’m glad you did too,” Chanyeol returns easily, relaxing back into his seat. “Where else could we find such an attractive, young CEO?”

Jongin isn’t the type to blush, but he feels his cheeks heating up all the same. He takes a sip of wine to clear his throat and mumbles, “You sure have a way with people.”

“My mom has an Italian restaurant and I spent most of my summers working tables there,” Chanyeol explains.

“We should’ve gone there instead,” Jongin protests.

“Next time, for sure. My mom would love to meet you. She’s been cooing over what a handsome young man you are ever since she found out I was chosen for this project and all she wants is for me to be more like you.”

Right, the mentorship project. It’s not like Jongin has any reason to meet Chanyeol’s parents, but he finds himself curious about how Chanyeol's family would be. “Sure, I’d love to.”

 

 

It only makes sense for them to meet up at a dog park for their third meeting, 

Chanyeol comes running five minutes late, his scarf flying behind him and Toben leaping to chase after it. “Sorry!”

He flops onto the grass and Toben takes the chance to climb all over his owner, showering Chanyeol’s face with sloppy kisses. Jongin laughs and pulls Monggu back before his puppy rushes over to welcome Chanyeol too.

“Are you okay? Do you need some water?” Jongin rummages in his backpack and pulls out a pack of tissues, offering it to Chanyeol.

“No, I’m good,” Chanyeol wheezes, though his face looks a bit pinched. He refuses the tissues and ruffles his hair to smooth the messy curls out, not unlike a puppy after a shower.

Toben and Monggu are wagging their tails into a frenzy, sniffing at each other in circles. 

Chanyeol lets go of the leash and lets Toben playfully pounce on Monggu while Jongin watches warily. It takes a few more beats for Monggu to play fight back, and Jongin relaxes. Monggu isn’t usually that good with people or other dogs, so they still have to keep an eye on the two dogs.

Chanyeol moves onto the bench next to where Jongin has been sitting. “Looks like our babies like each other.”

Their attention is stolen away by two golden retrievers that bounce over and Chanyeol goodnaturedly takes a tumble with one of the bigger ones, laughing as the other golden and Toben join in to shower his face with puppy kisses.

Jongin is content to sit back with Monggu on his lap, his little poodle already tired out. “He’s a fun guy, isn’t he, Monggu?” Jongin coos at his puppy, scratching her under the chin. “You’re usually so afraid of strangers but you’ve taken a liking to him too.”

Chanyeol finally comes back five minutes later, face redder than ever. He must be really out of shape but he has a piece of grass stuck on his cheek that Jongin reaches out to brush off.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah,” Chanyeol laughs sheepishly, cutting himself off with a sneeze that shakes his shoulders. “I might have forgotten to mention that I’m allergic to dogs?”

“What, did you bring any medicine?“

“In-” Chanyeol wheezes, pushing away Toben’s concerned pawing. He sneezes twice more in succession. “My backpack.”

Jongin dives for the backpack and digs through the side pocket until he finds the little packet of tablets. They don’t have any bottled water, so Chanyeol washes down the tablets with the hot tea that Jongin bought along.

For a while, they don’t talk. Jongin gently rubs Chanyeol’s back whenever his body is racked with another fit of nonstop sneezes and hands him enough tissues until Chanyeol’s nose is red. Having a niece with asthma means that Jongin is plenty equipped to deal with situations like this, but he never fails to feel that phantom tightening of his throat whenever he sees someone else gasping for breath.

“I’m okay now, I think,” Chanyeol says after long minutes, but his throat sounds sore and tight.

Without even thinking through his action, Jongin gently cups Chanyeol’s face in his hands and searches Chanyeol’s teary eyes. He looks anything but okay, more kicked puppy than the usual bright eyed bushy tailed Chanyeol. “Let’s go home, Chanyeol.”

The fight bleeds out of Chanyeol and he visibly deflates, letting Jongin help him pack up his nasal spray and bundle him in his car, speeding them to Chanyeol’s house.

 

 

Chanyeol lives in a tiny apartment, as expected of a university student, but his home is lived in and brimming with character. There are Rilakkuma plush toys on the couch and photographs of him and his roommate, Sehun, littering the room. Jongin spots a photo where Chanyeol has pastel pink hair while the kid next to him, probably Sehun, has rainbow hair and wonders how interesting Chanyeol’s teenaged years must be.

Chanyeol picks up the clothes strewn across the house as they enter, muttering a hundred and one apologies about Jongin having to see his messy house. “I swear, this is all Sehun.”

“I think I’ve seen you wear this exact jacket,” Jongin teases, holding up a denim jacket that he found lying on the shoe rack.

“Sehun and I share clothes.” Chanyeol snatches the jacket back and Jongin laughs, feeling comfortable enough to settle down on the couch. Monggu immediately hops onto the cough and settles next to him, making Chanyeol’s place her home already.

“I don’t usually bring my dates back until after three dates, but I guess you’re lucky.” Chanyeol grins at Jongin, expecting him to be flustered as usual, but Jongin refuses to give him that satisfaction.

“It’s our third one today, so I think we’re right on schedule.”

Chanyeol lets out a loud bark of laughter, triggering a giggling fit between them both. After they’ve finally calmed down, Chanyeol brings them a bottle of beer each and they settle down on the couch. 

“Sorry for ruining our meeting today,” Chanyeol says, a hint of a pout on his lips.

“No, I had fun, even if I had to haul you back to your house. Are you feeling better?”

Chanyeol grins as wide as his mouth can go. “Enough to eat a tub of ice cream. Hey, it just so happens I do have a tub of cookies and cream in the fridge.”

“Only if I get to choose what we watch.”

It only occurs much later when they’re two episodes of Brooklyn 99 in that he’s literally Netflix and chilling with Chanyeol, but the thought slips from his mind when Chanyeol starts laughing uncontrollably about a well-timed joke. 

 

 

On their fourth not-a-date-but-a-meeting, Jongin brings Chanyeol to a felting class.

Chanyeol’s incredulous expression when he finds out their destination makes Jongin feel silly, and maybe it is dumb to come to a class where their only other classmates are three nice ladies in their sixties.

“I just felt so bad for triggering your allergies last time,” Jongin explains sheepishly, fiddling with the felting needle and wanting to stab himself in the arm. In his mind, it sounded like a cute idea but in hindsight, felting is a weird activity to do with your mentee. “So I thought we could play with felt puppies instead.”

“No, no,” Chanyeol reassures quickly. “I think it’s sweet. Who would’ve guessed that someone who made a puppy friendship app would be allergic to puppies right?”

He pushes up his sleeves and Jongin mourns the loss of sweater paws. “How do I start?”

In the end, they have fun and walk away with two lopsided corgis each and only minimal injuries. 

Their classmates coo at their every interaction and tell them how cute they look together, and neither of them deny it even once.

 

 

Somehow, it takes them two more dinners before Jongin remembers he’s supposed to be mentoring Chanyeol in some way.

They talk about aspirations and hobbies, argue about Marvel vs DC, discuss about their shared love of Digimon and football, just about anything at all, but it seems more like Jongin learning how to be sociable than Chanyeol actually learning anything of use.

Jongin points this out when they meet for ice cream because Chanyeol wanted to try the new ice cream place that served soft serve in an egg waffle cone. “I think I’m being a terrible mentor. All I do is indulge your sweet tooth and buy you food.”

“As a broke college student, I am eternally grateful,” Chanyeol says mock solemnly. He chases a drop of melting ice cream down the cone and hums happily at the sweet burst of flavour. “This earl grey ice cream is so good.”

“Switch?” Jongin offers his and they gladly exchange cones, not noticing how it’s more a gesture between friends than one for professional relationship..

“Can I visit your office?” Chanyeol says suddenly while Jongin is taking a full bite of ice cream, and Jongin almost chokes.

Jongin’s first instinct is to say no, because why would he allow Chanyeol and Baekhyun to meet? 

Chanyeol is just so earnest, blinking up at him and voice rising in excitement. “I would love to observe how an actual company works and all.”

“Do you wear a suit?” Chanyeol cocks his head and gives Jongin a once over, like he’s imagining how Jongin would look, and that’s enough for Jongin to quickly change track and agree.

The logical part of him knows it would be good for Chanyeol to soak in an office environment, perhaps even allow him to network with the other programmers in the office.

Reluctantly, they set an appointment for Chanyeol to show up at the What’s for Dinner headquarters the following Monday. Chanyeol is adorably excited by the impending day and offers to buy Jongin dinner as well, and Jongin can’t say no to free chicken.

 

 

Jongin’s worries turn out to be truth as the first thing out of Baekhyun’s mouth when he sees who Jongin brought with him is, “Is it bring your pet to work day?”

Thankfully, Chanyeol is too busy being fascinated by the coffee machine in the pantry to hear Baekhyun.

“Shut it, Baekhyun. I’m your boss.” Jongin only pulls the boss card when he’s run out of cards to play, and as expected, it has absolutely no effect on Baekhyun.

“Not your pet?” Baekhyun drapes himself over Jongin, nuzzling his nose into Jongin’s neck. “Is it bring your boyfriend to work day?”

“Jongin!” Chanyeol stomps over with his shoulders thrown back, interrupting the two. “Would you show me your office?” He eyes Baekhyun and gives him a saccharine sweet smile. “Could I steal Jonginnie away?”

“Sure,” Jongin says, acutely aware of how Baekhyun is watching them eagerly. He shrugs Baekhyun off his back and nudges him with his hip, sending Baekhyun crashing into the refrigerator. 

As Baekhyun squawks his protests, Chanyeol relaxes, now directing his full attention to Jongin. 

“I’ll bring him around!” Jongdae, their head programmer, cuts in. He loops his arm into Chanyeol’s and grins up at him, a good head shorter than Chanyeol. “Where did you find him? I like him, can we hire him? I haven’t had a hackathon in a while. Do you want us to run through all the functions of your app?”

Chanyeol made his rounds around the office earlier while Jongin caught up on a client meeting, stopping by each department for a quick brief on processes. From the way Jongdae has his grip tight around Chanyeol’s wrist, seems like he’s earned a fan.

“Sometimes it crashes when I open it,” Chanyeol says accommodatingly, not even minding how Jongdae has pushed into his personal space. "I still haven't figured out why." 

Jongdae’s eye light up with a challenge and starts tugging Chanyeol away. “You have to meet Minseok. He’s on our team and went out for a coffee run earlier, so-”

“He fits in right with the employees,” Baekhyun sing-songs, and Jongin tries his best not to imagine how natural Chanyeol seems in the office.

 

 

On a particularly sunny day, Jongin picks Chanyeol up and brings him to a networking event. Jongin is one of the special guest mentors of the day, having been pegged as one of the young faces of the start up scene.

Chanyeol shows up looking completely dashing, his hair slicked back and dressed in a neat blazer suit. 

Jongin feels a familiar emotion flare up in his gut and he doesn’t even want to name it for what it is. Possessiveness. He wants to keep Chanyeol all to himself, and he doesn’t like it one bit.

“You clean up nicely, Park.” Jongin smiles at how casual he sounds. Great going, self. “New shoes?”

“New shirt, too.” Chanyeol confirms, smoothing down the wrinkles on the sleeves. It's a far cry from his usual hoodies and Adidas track pants, but it's not a bad look at all.

“You look good,” Jongin says, and turns his attention back to the roads so he doesn’t have to see Chanyeol’s reaction. “Do you remember all that I told you?”

Chanyeol taps his temple. “I have my questions prepared and saved in here.”

“You’ll do great.” He has no doubts Chanyeol will.

 

 

Chanyeol is completely at ease at the networking event, to no one’s surprise. 

Jongin finds himself distracted throughout, eyes seeking out Chanyeol wherever he goes. When Chanyeol glances his way and catches Jongin’s gaze, Chanyeol instinctively smiles at him and Jongin’s chest aches so much he has to turn away.

It’s almost painful to remember that they are in a strictly business relationship and Chanyeol is following Jongin around not because he enjoys Jongin’s company, but because Jongin is giving him a hefty $10,000 grant.

At Jongin’s recommendation, Chanyeol had business cards made to hand out to anyone he talked to, and he stops by halfway through the event to excitedly let Jongin know he’s almost running out of name cards.

“I’ll bring you around.” Jongin casually rests his hand on Chanyeol’s elbow to lead him around and introduces him to the friends he has picked up in the past few years. Most of them are fairly known in the start up scene, and it’ll be beneficial for Chanyeol to beef up his connections.

One of his college friends, Irene, smiles when Jongin introduces Chanyeol as an intern with What’s for Dinner. Since Chanyeol hasn’t been officially announced as the chosen mentee for What’s For Dinner’s mentorship programme, they agreed to keep the reason simple and believable. “And here I thought you finally showed up with a partner.”

“If he plays his cards right, he might be a _business_ partner,” Jongin replies nonplussed, used to Irene’s teasing, even as he notices Chanyeol’s eyes widen. He wills the way his heartbeat quickens away, knowing there’s no point hoping and believing in what should never happen.

Chanyeol opens his mouth like he wants to say something, but there’s no time to address this as Jongin is swept away by another group of aspiring students wanting to land an internship, and he loses Chanyeol in the crowd, overwhelmed with the endless questions shot his way.

 

Jongin finally manages to escape the overeager group of students a good twenty minutes later and hides himself near the end of the hall. 

Even after years in the industry, networking events like this drain the energy out of him. He isn’t cut out to be the poster boy of the start up scene, can barely keep up a charismatic smile long enough for a single photoshoot, but he knows it’s what necessary to boost the visibility of his company.

He has his eyes closed and almost dozes off when a hand on his shoulder startles him awake.

Chanyeol smiles down at him, oh so handsome and oh so understanding. Jongin’s heart betrays him by stuttering once before picking up into a thundering noise that echoes in his head.

“You look bored. Wanna skip?”

 

 

“I can’t believe we snuck out of a party where I’m the special guest,” Jongin laughs when they’ve settled themselves in the playground by Hangang river, each claiming a swing. It’s late enough in the afternoon that the playground is largely deserted, but too early for the evening family crowd to come by. There’s no one around to judge two overgrown men playing around on a children’s swing.

“It was a little stuffy,” Chanyeol admits. He left his blazer in Jongin’s car and is left in just a plain white tee, but it almost accentuates the muscles in his arms and Jongin has been suffering for thirty minutes now.

Chanyeol’s legs are too long for the kid-sized swing and he pouts whenever his feet drag the sand. He has to tuck his leg in slightly to even get traction but still, his feet catches on the ground and halts him mid-swing.

Finally, he gives up and stands behind Jongin. “I’ll push you.”

Before Jongin can protest, Chanyeol has his hands on Jongin’s back and he shoves hard, sending Jongin’s swing hurtling into the air. Jongin yells and laughs when the swing starts shaking wildly, but that only spurs Chanyeol into pushing harder, until Jongin is dizzy with adrenaline and breathless with laughter.

They order chicken delivery and a six pack of beer, not caring how it’s probably too early for alcohol. The spot they choose for their little picnic gives them a wide view of the river and the bridge, and Chanyeol kickstarts a silly pebble skipping contest that has their food half forgotten in favor of searching for the perfect rock.

Jongin laughs so much, his sides ache. He doesn’t even remember the last time he’s had so much fun.

Time passes easily like this, and they trade stories about their wild university days. Or at least, Chanyeol has wild stories about accidentally setting off the fire alarm and almost being caught kissing the professor’s aide behind the stairwells.

“He was hot,” Chanyeol says matter-of-factly, searching Jongin’s reaction for something negative, but Jongin just asks for a picture and agrees that the aide is Jongin’s type too, and that was that.

Jongin’s own university days were filled with trips to the library and internships, so he just listens to Chanyeol’s amusing anecdotes. He doesn’t even catch half of what Chanyeol says because he keeps getting distracted with the shape of Chanyeol’s mouth and his deep, deep voice that Jongin wants to drown himself in.

“You’re boring,” Chanyeol says teasingly, and it takes a moment for Jongin to realise that he really, actually is.

Jongin takes a deep breath and tries to collect his thoughts, choosing his words carefully. “It’s been a while since I’ve done this.”

Chanyeol furrows his brows in confusion. “Come to Hangang?”

Jongin picks at the grass by his shoes, pulling a few strands out by the roots. “No, feel young.”

Chanyeol moves his hand a fraction closer and nudges his thumb into Jongin’s, keeping just the tip of their thumbs touching. “Want to talk about it?”

“It’s just,” Jongin picks up a pebble and plays with it in his hand, turning it over and over again. “I took over the company when I was only twenty two.”

“I can’t imagine,” Chanyeol says softly. “That’s a year younger than I am now and I can barely figure out my meals, much less a company. You’re amazing, Kim Jongin.”

What’s amazing is how Chanyeol can turn Jongin’s mood around so fast, making him go from wallowing in uncertainty to a flustered mess, just with a smile and a few casual compliments.

Jongin throws the pebble and they both watch it skip once before sinking to the bottom of the river. “I wish you were around when I just started out. I could’ve your positive energy back then.”

“I’m here now.”

Jongin leans over to push his shoulder into Chanyeol’s, too embarrassed to say anything more. “You must be real popular in university, charming the socks off all the ladies. What are you doing at such a romantic place with an old soul like me?”

“I like your old soul. People always tell me to grow up, so we balance each other out.” Chanyeol’s voice drops deeper and he pauses for a beat before saying, “I chose a romantic place on purpose, you know.”

Chanyeol’s eyes are serious when he pulls Jongin’s hands into his, warming the cold fingers. “Jongin, I would like to go out on a date with you, a real one.”

Jongin has to be dense to not notice Chanyeol’s obvious interest in him, and he can’t quite say he doesn’t feel the same way. This confession has been a long time coming, and maybe they’ve felt the mutual interest even from their first date. They’re so comfortable around each other, and Jongin hasn’t been able to talk as easily to anyone before like he does with Chanyeol. He’s dedicated his past few years to the company and it’s been a while since he’s felt reckless and vulnerable like this, like he’s ready to throw caution into the wind and run away if Chanyeol asked him to.

He pulls his hand away all the same, looking away to avoid meeting Chanyeol’s eyes. “It’s a conflict of interest.”

Chanyeol stubbornly moves his head until he can look straight at Jongin, his gaze burning so deep that Jongin’s heart flutters in his chest. There’s no doubt that Chanyeol is completely sincere, and Jongin wants nothing more than to give into the soaring in his heart and just lean forward to kiss Chanyeol, like he’s been itching to do since weeks ago.

“It’s only a conflict if you’re interested in me. So are you, Kim Jongin?”

Jongin doesn’t answer the question outright, but it takes him a moment to say, “I can’t let you give up your dreams like this.”

“The whole point of this mentorship was for me to learn from the best, and I’ve already learned so much. I learned about how you are the sweetest, most hard working person I have ever met, and the public is blind to not see that. I can still continue learning, just next to you.“

Jongin shakes his head, then nods as an afterthought, to show that he’s listening.

“Have you announced me as your mentee?” Chanyeol asks. He moves to cover Jongin’s hand with his, lacing their fingers together like it’s the most natural thing in the world.

Jongin shakes his head again. “No, we wanted to make sure you and I were a good fit before we went any further into announcements.”

“Then pick a new kid to mentor. Start anew. With them, with me.”

“Can I think about it?” Jongin finally says. It all sounds so easy, he’s tempted to say yes. There are ethical issues about all this, a conflict of interest and perhaps a power imbalance, but when it comes down to it, they are only years apart in age and only a heartbeat apart in distance.

“That’s not a no,” Chanyeol allows and doesn’t push further. He squeezes Jongin’s hand once again before he lets go, thumb softy grazing Jongin’s wrist once. “Let’s meet again next Saturday, same time, at the dog park. I’ll take my medicine this time!” He barely gives Jongin time to respond before standing up. “See you next week, Jongin. I’ll wait for you.”

Then he’s gone with a wave, not even looking back. Even his departing silhouette is handsome.

Jongin sits by the river for a long time and watches the sun set, lost in his thoughts of what ifs.

 

 

“You are the softest person to ever exist,” Baekhyun tells him when he relays his situation to him over drinks, because as sad as it sounds, Jongin really doesn’t have anyone else to talk to. This is ultimately a work-related issue and Jongin isn’t too keen to talk about work to his other friends. “I would’ve grabbed him by the balls and kissed the daylights out of him.”

“I don’t want to know about you touching any balls, gross.” Jongin wrinkles his nose and scoots his chair further away from Baekhyun.

“But here you are, asking me to convince you to touch some balls.” Baekhyun hums. He chews on his straw noisily, having ordered a martini but still requesting a straw for some reason. 

“Straws are bad for the environment,” Jongin mumbles, knowing it’s not helping his case but unable to stop himself anyway.

“Are you worried he’s just hanging out around you because you’re giving him a ten thousand dollar grant?” Baekhyun asks, taking a sip of his drink with more satisfaction than necessary.

“But maybe he actually is!”

“Honey, the first time he came into our office and saw our company logo, I think he came in his pants. The kid is a tech geek. Jongdae has been chattering about how amazing he is for week. And for some reason, he’s head over heels for you.” He stops and gives Jongin a once over. “Okay, I understand why he’s so enamoured with you. If we weren’t best friends and colleagues, I’d try to tap that too. But you like being a sugar daddy, no?” 

Baekhyun cuts Jongin off when he starts protesting. “I have a new candidate for the mentorship programme I think you’ll really like. Her name is Seulgi and she wants to create a virtual dressing room. I think she would benefit much from your mentorship, and would make a perfect fit for our company.”

Jongin takes a deep breath and feels the tension bleed out of him as he breathes out. His mind is clearer than ever and he knows exactly what to do. Maybe he’s known what to do since before, but just needed a bit of encouragement and talking through for Jongin to ready himself. “Can I meet her?”

 

 

At five o’clock on the dot on Saturday, Jongin carefully brushes Monggu’s fur and gives her three extra kisses of encouragement. They’re a duo on a mission and Monggu has to be on his best behavior.

He spots the two of them from a distance away. It’s hard to mistake those sticky out ears anyway. 

“Hey, your dog looks cute,” he calls out as he approaches them. “Does he have a phone number?”

Chanyeol peeks up at him, a hint of a smile that he can’t hold back spilling out before he schools his expression back to a poker face. “Who are you? I can’t have strange men going after my Tobennie.”

Monggu wriggles in excitement at Jongin’s side, wanting to dive straight at Toben. “I think my Monggu has a crush on your dog.”

“Just because they’re both dogs doesn’t mean they should both date,” Chanyeol retorts, but he allows Toben to pull closer and sniff frantically at Monggu. “It’s not like just because we’re both humans, we should date too.”

“I don’t know, tall handsome stranger,” Jongin says quietly, crouching down until he’s at eye level with Chanyeol. “I’d quite like to date you.”

Chanyeol drops the banter immediately, shooting up straight so fast Jongin has to step back to avoid being headbutted on the nose. “Really?”

Jongin can’t help but mirror Chanyeol’s wide, hopeful smile. “Let’s try, Park. Do you want to go on a double date with me? We can let our dogs get to know each other more.”

Chanyeol wastes no time and grasps Jongin’s hand, beaming down at him like their week of silence never happened. He starts pulling them towards the dog-friendly cafe around the corner, chattering about their dogs, “I’m going to let them get dog-married! We’ll be dog parents-in-law, Jonginnie.”

Five seconds into their first official date and Chanyeol has already adopted a new nickname for Jongin. Jongin basks in the soft fondness that’s spiking in his heart and thinks that this is what it means to be happy.

 

 

What’s for Dinner makes headlines for branching into the online dating scene with a brand new venture. Even if Chanyeol insists that Pawprints is a friendship-based social media platform, all the news sites call it Tinder for Dogs Lover anyway, much to Baekhyun’s delight.

Partial proceeds from the in-app ads of Pawprints are pledged towards animal shelters across Seoul, and the general public laps it up. 

Most of all, Pawprints shoots to the top of the weekly downloaded list when shots of Chanyeol and Jongin cuddling at a dog park gets leaked to a tabloid magazine. 

No one, of course, is happier about this than Baekhyun.

“That’s a hell of an endorsement for your dating app! Works so well the developers fell in love!” Baekhyun throws his arms around Jongin and presses their cheeks together. “I’m so proud of you, bud!”

“Not a dating app,” Jongin repeats automatically, pushing Baekhyun away. “Friendship portal.”

“Not a dating app,” Chanyeol agrees as he cuts between the both of them and bumps Baekhyun away with his hip, taking the chance to wrap his arms around Jongin. Jongin instantly melts against Chanyeol, leaning back into his chest and allowing Chanyeol to pepper kisses into his hair. “Just our dating app.”

“Stop!” Baekhyun yells, pulling out a sheet of tissue from the box on Jongin’s and throwing it at the lovebirds. “I should never have introduced you.” 

“I’m glad I met you.” Chanyeol gently kisses Jongin’s nose, and then naturally tilts Jongin’s face up. Jongin eagerly closes the distance and immediately turns the kiss dirtier than Chanyeol meant to, adding more tongue and teeth just for show.

Even with the sound of Baekhyun dry retching in the background, every kiss with Chanyeol still feels like the first. He'd imprint on Chanyeol anytime.


End file.
